1. Field of the Invention
This invention is in the field of pyrometallurgical treating processes and apparatus wherein a suspension of fine grained particles such as non-ferrous metal ore concentrates in an oxygen-containing gas are injected into a reaction zone and melted. This application has subject matter in common with U.S. Ser. No. 480,021 filed Mar. 29, 1983 now U.S. Pat. No. 4,493,732 which was allowed on July 30, 1984 and its disclosure is hereby incorporated into this application by reference.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The subject matter of the previous application, Ser. No. 480,021, assigned to the same assignee as the present application, referred to a method and apparatus for carrying out pyrometallurgical processes, particularly for reaction melting of fine grained solids which were conducted through a nozzle as an exothermally reacting solids/gas mixture and then blown onto a melt in a vertical particle beam having a high mass flow velocity. For the formation of the vertical particle stream, the fine grained solid, for example a sulfidic non-ferrous metal ore concentrate, was conveyed suspended in oxygen through an accelerating nozzle. The nozzle was disposed in the roof wall of a melting reactor. An annular pilot frame was provided which concentrically surrounds the stream in the region of the orifice of the nozzle and serves to ignite the particle stream. Since high volatilization rates of accompanying volatile metals and high melting rates of non-volatile constituents are achieved in the burning particle stream because of the high temperatures above about 1700.degree. K., the large reaction surface and the intensive material exchange between gas and solids, the reaction melting process of the previous application has particular significance for the pyrometallurgical direct production of copper from sulfidic copper ore concentrates or even from complex concentrates with the production of a relatively pure raw copper and a low copper slag.